Master Wizard of Viegald
by Madame Penguin
Summary: Even as Master Wizard, Mel is forced to follow orders of a paranoid king. This does not stop her from attempting to bring peace to the surrounding lands as well as her Viegald...but will disturbing dreams and oncoming wars seize her? Hiatus
1. Chapter 1 To Dream

A/N: Okay this is the beginning of a dream. I love MagicalxMiracle as it is one of my all time favorite mangas. I have been meaning to upload this, but I wanted to finish the first real chapter before presenting this to make my story more understandable. I would have done chapter 2 as well if one of my friends weren't so impatient for it(Brandon XP). This had no beta so sorry if it doesn't make sense to you. I like reviews since it helps me write better and it gets my updates out sooner. ENJOY!

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The hallway was exquisite. It was so white yet there was no light. I paced my way down the hall in my cream-colored nightgown and lightly pressed my fingertips against the solid wall. Goose flesh appeared on my arms and legs as my bare feet touched the marble floor. The corridor seemed to go on forever without an end in sight.

My fingers brushed against a new obstacle as I continued on my way to nowhere. A single painting was presented before me and stood taller than three of me stacked on top of each other. I looked and I studied it, but for some reason I could only understand what form was in the frame. Maybe it was a landscape or a person, but I could not decipher it so I moved on. More and more mysterious portraits appeared, but I stopped for none since it would be a waste of my time to look at something I could never grasp.

No windows and no end. No way to escape and nowhere to go. What am I supposed to do? A breeze from no specific location ruffled my silver hair in my face, but what disturbed me was the scream that seemed to accompany it. My bones chilled and my blood ran cold. I could not move a single limb, nor hair on my body. All senses escaped me besides the most basic survival instincts.

I twisted back around from which I came and saw a door right in my face. Its dark mahogany wood seemed out of the ordinary from where ever I was, and the gold writing along the arch seemed foreign. Barely touching the edges of the doorframe, my body began to tremble without my command as small whimpers and screams escaped the entryway in front of me. Should I continue on and ignore the door? Or should I walk through and find the reason for my fears?

Without really comprehending it, I had already opened the door and strolled my way into the impending darkness that engulfed the room. My icy eyes scanned the abyss laid before me, and my stomach lurched at the troubling smells circulating the room. I fell to my knees as the entry sealed the inhabitants inside and cut off any source of fresh air coming from the hallway of no windows. My body was wracked with coughing fits as I heard my lungs, and the voices, around me suffer. They all moaned and cried. Wept with the distress of pain and despair.

I forced myself to stand above the bodies that revealed themselves around me. A groteus sight greeted me as I watched many forms of men's bodies either cut to pieces or bleeding to death, faces twisted with the misery of their wounds. An aisle cleared in the middle of the sea of dead soldiers, just as Moses did with the Red Sea under God's permission. I took off in a hurried second and ignored all hands that scratched at my nightgown in order to pull me down.

My legs failed me the next moment as I reached the end of my intended path, far from the sealed exit. A few bodies invited me and my vision to a wonderful sight as I got a full blown view of scarlet. The scent of copper and flowers greeted my nose as I feel face first to the dusty floor. An odd combination to smell, but this place was anything but normal. I barely registered the words flowing from a body's lips next to me except for the occasional, "…do not run…" "…you…this" "…did not…" "Why?..."

It soon encircled my throat with its bloody hands, and they constricted as hard as it able to. My breathing hitched and it slowly drained the life from my soul. I welcome the stop to this crazy nightmare, but none seemed to come quick. The job was being done slowly and painfully, trying to squeeze out every last ounce of feeling left in my delicate body. The last thing I was able to register was me trying to push away the abuser before blackening out…

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	2. Chapter 2 To Change

A/N: Whoops, forgot about my disclaimers! I **DO NOT** own the original MagicalxMiracle! Just this little beauty that just couldn't stay quiet in my head...

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I heard a scream in the distance as I lay still on my bed. Only after a few moments did I register that it was me that was crying out. Of course there should have been people bursting into my room demanding if I was all right, but none entered. Most of the guards would probably take post at the ends of the halls or on the royal family's floor. No nobles dared to live in this part of the castle after the intense meeting Yue held to free Vaith of another accusation towards to ebony man's loyalty. No guard would visit my room tonight since I am the Master Wizard of Viegald.

My body slowly lifted itself into a sitting position as it creaked with phantom pains. I could still feel the tiny hands that seem to grasp the slender neck of mine. My hands started to rub the tender flesh, and I winced as I could feel the psychological pains around the area. I know it was nothing more than a dream, or nightmare, but it felt so real. The screaming and the choking the life out of me seemed real enough.

The doctors diagnosed me with the "nerves", and I know they are full of it. Sure I keep having recollecting memories of my war days, but I could never forget them. I had helped so many people even though it might have caused me to lose a part of my sanity. My will stands strong and my voice brings hope to the citizens of Viegald. I guess the title of "Silver-haired Saint" comes with a price. I am no saint.

I have brought together warring countries yes, but I have yet to save the hearts of the uncertain peasants and nobles alike. They do not trust. They do not care for anyone but themselves. Here is the only time and place I ever think about the pessimistic side of my dream. Here I sit in my lonely bed with not a single living thing to discuss these frightening episodes.

After a few moments of debating to go back to sleep or to wake, I rise from my bed only to recoil from the frozen floor. I miss the plush carpeting of my country-side home. How I longed for the clear skies and rolling hills. The room is still blanketed by the shroud of night as I take in the beauty of the Lady Moon. It is the only source of comfort I can reach for and the only source of hope I can find through these empty nights.

My feet touch the ground once again, but I force myself to stay planted to the floor like the roots of a flowering willow tree. I wrap the comforter around my shivering body as I take a seat on my window ledge. If I were to go to the outside balcony next to me then I would be in plain view for all of Viegald to stare at even though it is night. Never know when the next terrorist attack _will_ happen.

The world outside now seems so different from the world of light. This place is void of anything besides brick buildings and imposing universities. The streets are blanketed with a soft layer of light from the odd streetlamps, and only the creatures of the night venture out into this world besides the occasional drunk coming home from a night of entertainment.

I sighed as time passed and the blossoming Sun appeared delicately above the horizon. These dreams have been becoming more frequent like the rebellions in the east and the starvation in the west. Are we one of the last countries left standing without having to resort to violence? As the Sun finally settled itself above the morning mist, a knock was heard from the door across the room. Just on schedule.

"Hey Mel! Get up! Breakfast is going…oh you're already up," I smiled warmly at my body double standing awkwardly in the entrance. I remember when he was so much smaller than me a few years ago, when Fern was still acting all obnoxious during the former Master Wizard's reign. His fiery red hair is still the same, but now he is a little taller than me and tries to be more mature.

"Thanks Fern, I will be down in a second okay," I got up from my perch and gently closed the door so that I could properly get dressed without him watching. It was funny to see him gape his mouth at me though. You don't normally see me awake at this hour in the morning unless you force me off the bed. Guess these long nights are taking a toll on my routines.

I walked over to my vanity to look at myself in the mirror only to find my clothes for the day already laid out. My spirits fall further as I noticed that even my style of dress is being controlled by the government. The reflection in front of me shows a young girl barely in her 20's already tired of the life she has been occupied with, the years etched into her very disposition with wisdom instead of with wrinkles. I touch my opposite and stared at the pale eyes that were searching mine, only to find weariness and a bit of nostalgia hidden beneath her eyelashes.

I find myself smiling again as a force of habit and chuckle at that thought of someone like me already falling so low. The brush on the table is picked up, and I sluggishly detangled the knots left from my night's unrest. I glare at the offending piece of cloth lying innocently in front of me, even though it is an outfit I would consider normally wearing. It is just the fact that I did not choose it.

Lately, the king has disappointed me with his paranoia and constantly having guards everywhere he goes. He should have known by now that people were going to attempt to kill him and take over his country. Maybe it was the fact that a neighboring kingdom is attempting to go to war with him… if it were not for me.

After dawning my new attire, I took one last look at myself. The folds of my long, navy blue dress graciously moving with each step I take, the white semi-robes that grace my shoulders for minimum warmth, the silver detailing that ran up my sides, and my winged hat that was perched on my head made me look as if I were important. I am supposed to be necessary, but I am nothing but a decoy to fool the countries of our prestige power, though we have none. My wizard powers are great, but they are no use for this decaying country that follows orders under a senile monarchy. I can not fight an entire country's army without help.

The princess has grown into quite a fine woman, but her heart is cold and closed to all. Her heart sealed with the unrequited love of the last Master Wizard. She can not heal and if I were a man, I would take it upon myself to help her rediscover the meaning of love even though I know I would never feel about her that way. It is just the fact that she is so beautiful yet holds that miserable air about her. That very aura has brought down centuries worth of power and monarchy in exchange for chaos and destruction.

I walk down the hall with a smile plastered on my face. Without this happiness that I show, people would start to question my motives. Why would I continue to protect a country on the verge of death? I have people that I cherish but that is not worth the petty protection I can provide. If the king were to order a mass genocide amongst the streets of Viegald, there is nothing I could do but run off with a few children in hand and escape persecution. I am nothing but a mere symbol and have nothing left to accomplish. Saving the world is too much to bear without others to support you.

I am greeted with a nice sight as I descend the stairs. It's good to see all of your friends talking normally in times like now, as if the country isn't being torn apart at the seams. Yue really does not interact with us nowadays considering his position is right below mine and takes care of most of the paperwork and gives lectures at the school. I am stuck here to "protect" our Viegald from harm and go out on recon missions for soldiers in the field, including researching possible complications in the future.

"Hey Mel," Vaith gives me one of his cheeky smiles that seem to brighten up the room. For once, my smile is actually heart-felt and my body warms at the feeling of being recognized by people who respect me for me, not my title. It's no surprise that he is here though. Even as captain of the Black Knights, he cannot stay away for too long.

"How was sleep last night?"

"Like a baby," Vaith gave one of those easy-going thumbs up with an added grin as Yue decided to whack him upside the head about trying to protect his sorry reputation and wearing him out. It all ended in chuckles. No harm done.

As a group, we headed into the great hall with much tension as we sat in our designated seats before the king arrived. The room was abnormally quiet for someone outside of the situation, but this morning was the same as every other morning since the king wanted his best around to make sure he and his granddaughter were safe. I sat with the dignity of a noble and patiently laid my hands in my lap as I watched my body-double squirm next to me, Vaith looking wary across from me, and Yue schooling his features into mere indifference.

A few measly minutes passed as the king was announced into the room and we, including a few more nobles or officials, stood up to greet our monarchy a good morning. I simply tilted my head in recognition as I did not feel the need to speak at the moment. Simple foods were presented to us this morning as a strawberry pastry was set before me along with a wine glass of milk…who actually needs a wine glass to drink milk from?

I quietly accept the meal and take a few bites before the memories of last night invade my mind and excuse myself from the table saying that I needed to take care of some business at the academy. My motives were put into question since Yue usually takes care of any educational related visits, "What good would I be as a wizard if I did not help the youth of our country." Have they not realized that all Yue really does is lecture and not converse between the students?

Lying down in my bed for a few minutes seemed to fight down the queasiness left in my stomach from the light breakfast that I had barely touched. I thank whatever nurse was smart enough to leave a pitcher of cool water on my coffee table as a pour myself a glass of the pristine liquid and slowly empty its contents. Finally resolved, I leave my room and walk down the street to turn the corner and enter the gates with very few bows given to me since many people were busier working than showing their respect to upper classmen. This is the way a country should act instead of having to grovel at the feet of a power hungry ruler.

A smile graces my lips once again as the practicing students in the school field tried to impress me with their beginning spells. I had laughed with my old instructor as we reminisced about my horrible days as a student and how useless I was in my first year. The students gave me googly eyes as I confirmed their denial about my escapades, and the teacher pretended to be dramatic about it. By the time he starts to give lectures about being a successful wizard, I wave my hand and slowly etch away from the group to let them continue their work. My heart fills with joy as some girls exclaim how they want to be just like me and be strong. The only real hope I have is that none become the nearly heartless drone I have become under the king's wishes.

Other classes had the same effect as I walked in to observe their studies. Even a few cocky kids were brave enough to challenge me, though their instructors would never allow it. I promised I would not harm them, though the educators highly doubted that since I had a prestigious reputation to uphold. Few came up to me after their morning classes for advice. I had to promise the other students that I would come again soon to help the others I could not help that day. The glitter and admiration that shown in their eyes made me feel even guiltier for using this smile on them.

When I ended my visit to the beaming academy of bright and hopeful youths, a guard had come up to me with a white, sealed letter with no address. I rushed to my private room as I read the orders given to me by our secret ops and changed into a more appropriate attire. Problems in Glice were starting up again.

I slipped on some black breeches and sturdy boots to steady me on the rolling hills of Glice country. I threw my simple dress to the side and pulled my grey vest with the crest of Viegald over my head. My hair was pinned up in a pony tail by a ribbon as I grabbed my last piece of clothing, a black coat to cover my whereabouts in the darkness of the night.I checked my mission bag for my provisions and any back up medications in case I may need them if my magic were to fail me.

I grabbed my casting staff while slipping in the back labyrinth of the castle walls before heading to Glenn's orphan home. I was certain my young body-double would be spending most of his day there, "Hey! Hey! It's the master wizard!!!"

"Ah?!" I fell down on the hard pavement as the children gathered around and tackled me.

"It seems as though you do quite well with children Mel," I laughed along with Glenn and the children as they tried to get as close to my face and tug on my clothing. My vision focused on the melodic voice above me as I graciously accepted the pale hand to help me up. The kids whined as I was released from their grasps, "Now children go back to your playing as I need to speak with the Master."

A few nods and complaints later led me to the outside patio of the orphan home with a cup of warm tea in my hands as I smiled, "How have you been Glenn?"

"All is well for being a normal day in Viegald. Though I have become worried over 'certain' events as of late," Glenn gave me one of that kind, knowing look that gave me the silent strength I needed. With the oncoming accusations of Vaith's priorities, Yue's anger provoked by paperwork, Fern's overall maturity, my own sanity, and the safety of Viegald at risk… I would be surprised if he did not worry. He has always been the most calm when it came to other people's problems.

I sighed as I swished my cup back and forth to watch the herbal contents slide back and forth. We sat in silence as I agreed with him and placed that same smile on my face, "I have another mission." Glenn nodded his head as he searched for my body double while I slowly took sips from my cooling cup.

Fern walked in and grumpily shoved in an extra chair, "Another one?"

"Fern!"

I nodded my head as Fern glared at me, "Now don't look at me like that. You know very well as the rest of us that I do not go on these little 'trips' for fun." My arms crossed over my chest as I leveled my gaze with my red head counter part. We sat there doing nothing as my eyebrow twitched, wishing that I could blink. Thankfully a little girl came to tackle him and allowed me to blink as much as I desired, "You know what to do." I chuckled on my way out and gave proper thanks to Glenn before taking my leave at sundown.

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	3. Chapter 3 To Choose

This destruction must stop.

Around the trees of the deep forest and onto the clear plains of the battle field laid countless bodies of soldiers strewed about. I could feel a hot, tingling sensation behind my eyes as a slight breeze caught the stench of death to greeted my nose. The smell of charred dirt accompanied the disgusting odor along with the coppery taint of blood. My feet shuffled amongst the small patches of grass still left of the battlefield as I conjured bouquets of red poppies, pink sweet peas, and yellow zinnias to spread among the dead. No amount of lilies could cover up the stomach-wrenching odor of decaying soldiers.

The title of Master Wizard or Silver-Haired Saint could not help these souls. This is the first time in a long time I have ever felt this useless on a blazing battlefield. Where had my timing and prestigious title gone…if only I had taken the growing problems of Glice more seriously these men would not have had to risks their lives. I was supposed to end all of this already! The blazing sun of afternoon traded for its night capped shadow as the orange star slowly descended further down the horizon. I have wasted too much time.

I looked about the haunting battlefield as I set off towards the forest that belonged to the Denzel tribe. The last time the country's alliance was broken, the tribe was more willing to cooperate than its country's greedy king. My body felt breathless when a warm, bloody hand grabbed my ankle before I was able to reach the edges of the trees.

"H-help…" I stared at the body as the man's lifeless, black eyes that started to dim as many seconds passed. His hand slowly retracted as he went limp, eyes slowly closing.

"Oh no you don't," I knelt by the bloody soldier whose left arm had been severely damaged. Peeling back the tattered cloth of leather from his chest, I grabbed my staff to channel my magic through it. The amethyst stone shone brightly as the little bit of my medical abilities as a wizard commanded my magic to heal the half-dead man in front of me. I had witnessed one too many deaths in my short years. I would not let this man die for an unwanted cause.

After the moon had reached its highest peaks, the man had shown much improvement except the occasional groan. Gently, I took the soldier's head in my hands to lift it to a canister of water from my pack, "Drink as much as you want but drink slowly. No need for you to be choking and reopening any other wounds."

The man gulped down mass amounts of the clear liquid until I had to take it away, fearing he would throw up from drinking too much. Only a quarter of the full canister was left, "Thanks…"

"Hush. Save your strength considering all I have done was the right thing. Now rest soldier for you have done your part thus far. When you awake again, go back to your family and quit your efforts in a dying war," As I stood up to leave, his hand returned to my dirty ankle and stared at me with a will so strong that it glittered brightly within his now grey eyes.

"Take me…with you."

"No."

"You must. I must return to Denzel… He needs my help," the man's eyebrows knitted together in a last effort to stop the pain shooting through his body. I sighed as I knelt by him once again. "Take me with you." His voice was too stubborn to deal with in a civilized manner.

Instead, I gently grabbed his right arm, "Wrap you arm around my neck. I'll carry you to where you need to be."

"How do you know… where our camp is?" His guard was up immediately from what I could tell from his shoulders tensing up as we made our way through the dense forest. I stepped over a mangled body that had his arm lopped off as I tried to avoid the puddle of black blood pooled around it. "Answer me Silver."

I chuckled at the small nickname, "My name is Merleawe from the country of Viegald. I have dealt with a similar situation with your leader before and have come in contact with your peoples' home base. I mean to cause no harm." My gaze stood confident against his cold glare. He was truly a loyal soldier for his cause.

He slowly nodded his head and focused on the task of walking with his shaky legs. My guidance kept him from the worse of falls or stepping in less appealing body masses, "Why now?" I turned my head to look at him once again, "Why do you help us now while we have suffered for so long?"

I halted in our steady pace and stared at the man. "What do you mean," I demanded quickly and tighten my hold of his right hand to emphasis my curiosity.

"A civil war broke out amongst us for over a month or two ago. If Viegald was so worried about us, why have they only sent out someone to investigate it now?"

My gaze iced over as I tried to calm down my raging magic. Now the king of **my** own country infiltrated and contaminated **my** own information network under **my** own nose. I started walking with the man once again as I startled him out of his own thoughts, "I was unaware of how long this was going on. Let me assure you that I should have been notified of this sooner."

"Too bad… we are almost-" All of a sudden, a group of arrow clad warriors held up there bows and shot at the two of us. I tried my best to dodge with the man draped across my shoulders while I used my right hand to cast barrier spells around us. Though the shields were not as strong as they should be due to healing the soldier earlier, the adrenaline of the fight kept me going and made it easier to dodge the oncoming attacks.

"HOLD YOU FIRE!"

Across from us stood a man of over six feet with very tan skin and flimsy cloth armor. His muscles were well defined from the many days of training he must have endured. The shooters surrounding us lowered their weapons but kept a watchful gaze at us, "Well isn't it Aldous."

The large man strode forward and met the gaze of my soldier patient. I discreetly shifted my weight to my back foot and ready myself in case I needed to fight this giant of a man compared to me. Aldous cracked a huge smile and barely lifted a thumbs up to the dark man with his damaged left hand, "They couldn't take me down that easy. Not with little Silver appearing out of nowhere."

The guy laughed at Aldous and offered a nod towards me, "I thank you for helping my second in command, Merleawe."

I smiled back at the dark man, "I would have thought you had forgotten me with all of your men so ready to attack me without a single explanation Vincent."

"We, our people, cannot afford to risk such a luxury as conversation when the king is so willingly to kill us on first sight."

Aldous swiftly looked back and forth between me and Vincent, "Wait… you two know each other?"

"Aldous, this here is the silver-hair saint I was telling you about that once saved us from all creating a civil war. Though my brother and I regret it, our situation started to get worse again after a few months after you left us Merleawe."

"I can see that," my smile turned into a frown as I scanned the crowd of archers watching our little mini drama, "What has the king done to deserve this outbreak?"

"Power. Same as last time. He could not help the fact that his country's people were starting to get a voice in the decisions he was supposed to make. He started raising our taxes, unlawfully arresting innocent citizens, and even punished little crimes with death. Denzel and I took up the reigns of rebellion with some of our friends, and it soon escalated to the point of treason so we all left which unknowingly started another civil war. The first time was forgivable, but we could not allow this to happen twice."

I sighed as Vincent ordered one of the stronger archers to take Aldous away and treat him properly. With the weight lifted, I cracked my back and straightened my spine to accommodate the lightness. At least now I could stand with the dignity of an official, "Care to accept the help of a former acquaintance?"

Vincent's onyx eyes twinkled in the little moonlight provided from the thick forestry, "I would be honored." I felt the corners of my lips twitch as I took a deep breath, trying to take in as much oxygen as I could. Our group moved at an efficient pace back to their camp, and it did not take long to see the small flickers of orange-yellow fire in the distance.

Standing a distance from the group, Vincent gave his final orders. I studied the group around me as men in their early twenties to late forties littered the camp site. Aldous waved good-bye to me as he was ushered into a nearby medical tent. Only moments later did I hear screeching from the tent as his wounds were being taken care of. I couldn't help the chuckle that escaped my lips.

Amongst the thread of soldiers did I find what I was finally looking for. I made a beeline for the man at the end of the campsite near a fire. His face was darkened by the deep shadows as was the sharp features of his shirtless body. His eyes lifted from the blazing fire to my eyes as if to challenge me, "I was wondering when your nosy little self would appear Mel."

I slightly tilted my head and put on a sickly sweet smile, "Of course. It was only a matter of time before I had to clean up your mess child."

The ebony man stood and viciously spat back at me, "I am no child. In fact, I'm older than you!"

"As the older twin brother of Vincent, I would have thought you would be more cool-headed Denzel. I guess the last war didn't teach you a lesson."

"That's it!" Denzel linked his arm around my neck before I could respond and a stinging sensation was driven into my head. I tried to squirm my way out of his grip and elbowed him in the gut before he finally set me free. Rubbing my head to elevate the pain Denzel laughed, "See what happens when you disrespect your elders?"

"Well you didn't need to knead into my head as if it was dough! I kind of need my brain cells in order to help your pathetic hide once again," I glared at him with only half-contempt as the rest of the camp laughed at out antics. Heat rose to my cheeks as I could feel the coloration turned my face pink.

"Now, now. Can't we all just get along here?" I turned my head as Vincent spoke. Both Denzel and I replied no at the same time which offset another glaring match, but I was going to win that was for sure. How could I ever lose to this pompous jerk that was supposed to be these people's tribal leader?!

"I swear you know how to get my blood boiling!"

"Same here!" Denzel's right eye was twitching.

For the longest time I just stood there in an uptight stance waiting for my opponent to fail. Soon the men in the camp were even placing bets on who would last the longest though most were placed on Denzel. I would prove all those fools wrong. A man should know better than to cross a woman when she was angry.

My hair swayed as a slight breeze passed across the camp. Denzel's eyes were starting to water and I knew better than to goad him. That would only make his resolve stronger and cause him to keep his eyelids up until his eyes were practically falling from his sockets. Finally, the breeze was too much for the warrior as he rubbed his eyes while muttering profanities at me. I closed my eyes and smirked as I heard Denzel's fellow camp mates mutter about how useless Denzel was and how much money they lost. Let's just say some of their men's wives will not be pleased.

"Vincent," the addressed man slightly hummed in response, "Where are the women? I am pretty sure you wouldn't have left that beautiful lady of yours off gallivanting the streets of Glice with your crazy older brother at it again."

"HEY!"

"I was not talking about you Denzel unfortunately…anyways?"

"Well our women are in another camp with half of our men considering our main group here is more likely to be targeted," Vincent ruffled my silver hair until I was pretty sure it resembled a bird's nest, "Calm down. No need to worry cause that's what we're here for. You will be included in our plans and all, but this is a battle between our people, not your country. Plus I'm more certain that it's more of a sibling rivalry the king is trying to recreate."

"Are there any real moments where you do not speak in full paragraphs?" My eyebrows knitted in curiosity yet my eyes held mirth of playfulness as I tried to fix my unrully hair back into a pony-tail.

"Of course not. How else would I shut that pretty little trap of yours?"

"You have to listen to Denzel's more than me so why are you complaining?"

"Must you two always pick on me every time you two meet?!" Vincent and I stared at Denzel as if he were crazy. I do not know how I would survive if I didn't have moments like these to keep me sane. I only prayed to a god I hardly believed in.

"Yes my lovely twin. If not then this camp would go back to being depressed with a side order of your discouraging attitude." Denzel merely narrowed his coal eyes at his mirror twin's and stalked off to probably check on Aldous for the first time since their arrival.

Vincent sighed as he watched his twin walk off, "Mel. Ever since this war started Denzel has not been his usual happy-go-lucky self. He has tried to keep in spirits, but after a failed infiltration mission he has been out of it. Over one-fourth of our men were killed, and he blames himself. The only way he can return to who he was is to win this dispute. Are you sure you would want to help even though the odds are against us? After all, this won't be like the last time where words solved the crisis. There will be blood, and there will be things that will haunt your memories to add more troubles to your nightmares. Can you handle this?"

I sat there feeling somewhat dejected. All of these problems just kept aculminating, but I knew this was to be expected the moment I saw the camp. I would do anything to bring back the happy smiles of these people no matter what. My icy blue eyes greeted the sight of obsidian orbs waiting for my reply, "Yes."


	4. Chapter 4 To Help

Okay really sorry for not updating, but besides school I've either been sleeping or doing the bare essentials. I had this chapter started a long time ago and only today was I finally able to finish it...anyways please tell me if there are any grammar mistakes or problems(besides the fragmented sentence because I am pretty sure I don't think in complete sentences all the time). Oh and at one point of the dream sequence there are a few disjointed sentence and questions to resemble the thought process of a child so don't get confused there. Thank you all for for your lovely reviews that make me squeal each time I read them though I wish I could properly reply back to you: qwerty, Thumbs up guy!, DDR Freak, Dante, Sin, and B. Deal (oh and good job on the guessing one of the scenes in this chapter though I didn't want to put too much emphasis on it haha)

**CHALLENGE TO MY READERS:** If you want, try to make your own versions of the outfits I describe Mel in to make it more interesting. I want to see if people can correctly dress up my favorite girl with my descriptions. All work will be credited and I post up the links to your awesome works.

_Italics_ Dream sequence

regular text

"talking"

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The night felt like it could go on forever. The only other company I had was the sharp whistle of the passing winds. Men of the camp huddled around dying fires while others lay in freezing tents in hopes of getting some semblance of privacy. Denzel was kind enough to let me have my own tent since I was a girl, but I felt almost as lonely as I was in the castle. Blocked off from my friends.

I could not stand it. My mind was warning me of what would happen if I were to fall asleep. It kept gnawing at my mind as I tried to ignore its pleas in hopes of trying to get some rest. If I kept on trying, maybe sweet dreams would come to me for once. Finally, my instincts calm down long enough for me to relax in the wind-battered cloth tent.

_Once again I found myself in a beautiful hallway. The winds shuffled my feet forward down the hall, across cold marbling. My lips quirked up into a smile as the breeze gently swayed my pale dress all around me. The walls were smoother against my fingertips than the last time I was here as they glided across the stone surface. I stopped to look at the painting, but what surprised me was the image inside its frame. My eyes widened as the picture moved and showed the image of a bloody battlefield. _

_My fingertips attempted to touch its pastel surface, but an unknown force kept me from actually feeling the figures move underneath my touch. I saw Denzel. His opposing figure commanded his troops with the air of leadership that only came with years of practice. Vincent was only a few meters away from his brother with his own set of troops following behind him. They charged forward in brilliant shades of browns and reds that resembled their rebel flags. Many arrows and swords pierced through the waves of men fighting against each other amongst the vast landscape of blood. I grabbed the sides of the golden frame and tried to scream at the men to stop. My new friends and comrades were being slaughtered. It was just useless. _

_I must be delirious to be arguing with a painting that should not even be moving in the first place._

_I stood frozen in front of the portrait as the battle raged on and watched my new friend Aldous fall in defeat. Wizards flew spells at each other and burnt the very ground their fellow alliance walked on. Soon each wizard fell as their supply of magic ran cold. I watched as their life force drained the color from their faces as they died before they even hit the ground. If I were allowed to remain with the image further I could have help them somehow, but that pesky wind pushed me forward once again. I kept on yelling at the unknown force and tried to fight against the breeze's pull, but I was dragged towards my previous path. Something needed me to move on. _

_In the end, I stood in front of a beautiful archway with foreboding doors. I knew what was to come. Screams and cries infiltrated my hearing as my hands grabbed at my ears in desperation. At the corner of my eye, something odd caught my attention. A single pale hand lifted up around the corner of another hallway that appeared from nowhere. I ran away from that horrid doorway for the first time in all of my nightmares to follow the hand that beckoned me. A flash of pure white danced across my vision as I rounded the corner. The hands guarding my ears went to my eyes and shielded them from the blinding light._

_When my vision finally cleared, that same hand from before disappeared behind an entryway draped with maroon curtains. My bare feet splashed against cold water as I cautiously found my way pass more and more creepy portraits with no definite image. The clear liquid darkened as I neared the curtains which blocked my view from looking further into its mysterious abyss. _

_A small child's laughter ringed from wall to wall, and the drapes swayed slightly as a ball rolled across the floor. I bent to the ground to pick up the bouncy round object. The bottom of my cream dress was now soaked tan, but I did not care as I dropped the opal ball and caught it. I giggled as the ball continuously changed colors each time it came back from the murky floor. An array of rainbows danced in front of me as I was entertained enough to stay where I was. That was until the round ball deflated in my grasps and flopped its way back to the curtains as if tempting me to follow it._

_I took small, hesitant steps to the curtains and lightly ran my hand across its velvety surface. Soft like fur, the curtains seem to sigh as I pushed back the fabric from my path. I was expecting darkness to envelop me, but a beautiful forest greeted my vision._

_All around me were different hues of green punctuated with spots of yellow from the high sun. I couldn't smell anything though and no birds sang in this peaceful place. Just silence. The curtain was nowhere to be seen as I watched the yards of grass crush underneath my feet. On and on I went, like the marble hallways, until I reached an enormous tree covered in old scars and tumbling leaves. Amongst the greenery, children circled around the trunk of the tree as another figure was leaning up against the bark. The man was bleeding at an alarming rate. _

_Did I really care? My attention diverted elsewhere. Across the field stood another watching the events. He was cloaked in darkness and watched with strange eyes…what is going on? What is happening? Was that really a man? Never mind. One of the kids broke from the group and ran towards me with a hand stretched out with expectant emerald eyes, "Come play."_

_Should I trust him? Why? My hand almost took his, but I quickly pulled back. They were small. They were chubby. They were soft. My body felt tiny as well. Am I a child? Why can I not think straight? Oh look a shiny rock._

_The rock skipped and destroyed the image of the child as I kicked the shiny stone. All the other children that were playing stopped their singing and stared at me with expectant eyes. I blinked. The other from across the field was no longer there. I twisted round and round until I finally spotted him in the middle of the kids. Over a slump body, the mysterious person was speckled in red dots. I walked over a rainbow ball to get a closer look._

_The man smirked at me as the others split apart to let me through. "Care to help little one?"_

_I tilted my head in wonderment. His voice was soothing. It felt nice, "What for?"_

"_Well it is your fault," the dark haired male lifted his hand in a swooping motion around the kids that suddenly fell to the ground only to land on the bloody body at the tree trunk, "You cannot expect to get away with this after all."_

_My eyes widen in horror. Icy blue eyes met mine in accusation, "I hate you. Why must you always torture me?!" More blood flowed in crimson rivers down the boy's face._

_I shook my head. This was not happening. I didn't do anything! I swear! Ask…_

_There was no one to ask anymore._

I felt myself screaming as a jolt of fear tingled up my spinal column. My mind felt lucid and my throat kept convulsing either from lack of water or the need to vomit. I tucked my head in between my legs as my shuddering breaths gasped for unadulterated oxygen. My breath seemed to be getting away from me a lot as of lately. I expected no one to barge in. It was just another night at the castle so why was someone in here?

Hands covered my face and frantic calls ordered me to do something. May be I would once when I could find myself. My eyes fluttered close as the calls only got worse though I vaguely order them to quiet down. I'm not sure if they heard me or not considering the sound of their voices sounded more hurried. By the time I got around to feeling somewhat normal for someone like me, I opened my eyes to find scared, black holes boring down on my face.

A groan escaped my lips as I tried to sit up once again only to be pushed down. An order of cool water and a towel soon followed as a series of questions were thrown at me. I still felt too lucid to really comprehend what he was asking me, but I did stare at him to let him know that at least I was conscious. His eyes were starting to annoy me though with their constant fear fueling my uncertainty.

I coughed when a dry breath caused my throat to tickle from lack of water. A canister was shoved my way as the liquid was forced down my throat. I coughed even more when the person was stupid enough not to let me lift my head to avoid letting the water go down the wrong pipe. My throat felt as if it was on fire, but at least it woke me up. The person was shoved out of the way to let another take his place.

Denzel was backed up in a corner looking scared for the first time in my life. Vincent sat close as he pulled me up to let me breath better with another random soldier squirming awkwardly in the tent. A soothing hand rubbed the small part of my back trying to calm down my insistent coughs.I blinked once more as I filed away disjointed parts of my nightmare in some empty slot in the cabinet called my mind. It seems as though my company was expecting an answer for now.

"Good evening everyone," I said hoarsely. Denzel's face looked at me strangely before he scoffed incredulously and threw the unknown soldier out of the tent. Vincent further bothered himself as he checked for my temperature and gave me a towel to wipe off the excess sweat my face had gathered during my sleep.

"Is the idiot sick or what?" I couldn't even argue or glare at Denzel's offending comment as he made himself comfortable on my right side. "She must be if she won't even fight back."

"I'm fine."

Vincent shook his head as he sighed at me, "Do you really expect us to believe that after that bloody scream woke up almost half of the continent? What in the world is going on with you Mel?" The twins sat in silence for a bit besides the random twitches appearing above Denzel's eye. I do not know how long we sat there staring at each other, but Vincent waited patiently for me.

What was I supposed to tell these two? That Viegald is on the verge of collapsing, my people are separating, or that these freakish nightmares are chewing at every thought I had especially when I try to sleep at night?

"I'm fine," I repeated.

"Oh for Christ's sake tell us the truth," Denzel's eyes blazed furiously at me as I put up my guard before Vincent tried to get his brother to calm down.

"Just tell the men I had a nightmare."

"Did you?" Denzel faced me with an all knowing look on his cold features.

"Is it any of your business?" I felt defensive. This was my burden to bear, and I was not about to let a friend or fellow comrade know anything that personal.

"Any of our business?!" Denzel screamed and his hands grabbed my face to force me to look at him. It seems as though my eye contact had strayed away during at some point of the conversation. "If you are so willing to help us, why can't we help you!?" I could see the anger swirl in his eyes as he spoke louder and louder with each word. "Plus, if you're so badly damaged then we may not be able to use you in battle,"

"Denzel-"

"No, I will not calm down brother! I am tired of her uptight attitude, and if she thinks any of us as friends then I can't tell if she's lying or not," his teeth grinded against each other as he slowly tried calmed himself down. He let his grip fall from my face. I didn't dare to move or fight back. Denzel then stood up and left the tent.

It was best to leave things be for a bit.

"Please do not take any of his words the wrong way. He means well, but he doesn't want to take any chances. He's worried about you. You have helped countless people and many enemies, but it seems you have made the biggest impact on Denzel than any other person he has met. Could you just tell us one little thing that is disturbing you?" There goes Vincent again with his long monologues and negotiating tendencies. My friends were worried for my well-being.

I started to laugh and couldn't stop it. After years of being pent up in a castle, this was the first time my friends actually took the time to ask what was going on. Wasn't this just too ironic? Tears pooled from my eyes as both gratitude and sadness paired together to cause havoc on my emotions. I just would not stop and about half-way through I could feel my lungs screaming for air in a burning frenzy. I must have looked like a maniac to Vincent, but who cares? Oh yeah, my friends.

My laughs finally calmed down to a slight giggle as I wiped all the saltiness from my cheeks. Some still escaped my eyes and continued to fall, so I gave up on trying to get rid of them. Vincent stared at me until I was finished but I just kept on hiccupping, "What the hell was that about?"

"F-Forgive me. I- I couldn't h-help it," I hiccupped every few words, "J-Just something snapped a-and I d-don't know." Another giggle erupted from my throat.

Nervousness does many things to your body. First you feel anxious and tired while every inch of your skin feels prickly. What's even worse is that your enemy can pick out every weakness and use it to their advantage. Call it paranoia, but in my line of work everyday is a battlefield of emotion and skill.

"Stop doing that," Vincent grabbed a hold of my wrangling hands that laid in my lap, but that didn't stop the jumpiness in my legs.

"I can't help it." I cracked a smile, "Could you just give me a moment?"

Vincent sighed as he reluctantly stood up to leave. From the small opening of Vincent's exit, I could see Denzel yelling at some of his subordinates. That man was one mood swing after another.

I could see myself shaking. My hands trembled and my legs wiggled the blanket covering my body off. I took a moment to focus and a small stream of magic that weaved through my veins to comfort me. Out of all the spells I have learned as a wizard, this was one of my favorites. It was like my own personal pain killer.

I cracked my neck from side to side and stretched my back. From there I stood and kept my feet at equal distance before bending down to touch them. My clothes felt dirty as they were the same from yesterday. I grabbed my small pack in the back corner of the tent and walked out after making sure my hair wasn't that big of a mess.

"And where do you think you're going?" Did I ever mention how much I hated Denzel and his height advantage over me? The camp fell into faint whispers as the men once again started to bet on who would come out on top. My eyes stared lazily at his angry ones instead of arguing with the fool.

"I'm going to clean up. Move." Many men cheered quietly as they earned their money back from the previous day once I shoved Denzel out of my way. The look the men received from Denzel I return was not pretty and promised many grueling hours of practice.

I know that it was cruel of me, but I couldn't deal with someone like Denzel at the moment. Thankfully the river wasn't too far from the camp, but it was far enough to block off all sounds from the base. The water felt icy cold against my bare skin as I ripped off the dark clothing from yesterday except for my under armor.

My head ducked under the water as I dived as far as I could towards the bottom of the river. I scratched the excess dirt from my sliver hair and watched as the silver strands followed the slow rhythm of the tides like beads of mercury.

When I reached the surface something did not sit right to me. From the left to my right all I saw were random creatures of the forest to practically nothing, but the feeling never left.

"Who is there?" I ringed out some of the dripping water from my hair. Nothing greeted my call, but that was their mistake. I whipped out a thread of my warm magic and snapped the invisible strand. A few feet away came a yelp of surrender, "Denzel what are you doing?"

Out of the thick bushes his dark hair popped up, "Are you dressed?"

"Of course. I'm still cleaning though, so you can go sit on that rock over there till I'm done." I pointed to a boulder on the far of the edge of the river.

He sat there waiting for me and was thankfully looking away. A few minutes passed before he decided to break the quiet of my bathing once again, "I just wanted to make sure you were safe."

"Couldn't of this have waited until I came back," I squished the soap from my long hair and dipped it back into the stream. Having long hair was such a hassle sometimes, especially when you had to comb through it with nothing but your fingers.

"I meant both now and before. You never know what's out here," Denzel gaze dodged from side to side to take a quick once-over the area. "But since you are so willing to talk…"

"No."

"Come on Mel. Anything would help me understand what the hell is going on with you. Ever since you arrived I kept feeling that something was wrong," I was about to interject, but Denzel held a hand up to silence me, "Let me finish. You may not have noticed but behind that confident exterior of yours I can't help but see you're paranoid."

I continued my cleaning and let him answer his own question, "Has this to do with our situation or the problems in Viegald?"

"Both." Couldn't hurt to be honest right now.

"But mainly Viegald."

Denzel's eyes were really starting to bother me. They express everything and force you to agree with everything he says. "Yes, but there is nothing to fix. Only time will heal the wounds."

"Bull."

"For this situation… it is all I can do." I watched as the droplets of water fall and merge with the moving river.

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	5. Chapter 5 To Capture

A/N: Sorry for not uploading this in like...5 months...but I had real world stuff to accomplish plus the transitionary spots were kind of iffy. Hope you guys like this and report anything you find wrong.

Glice's king will be named Gyles IV. You will get to see more of him next chapter.

New character intro is in this chapter. If you got lost, there's a character profile at the end of the chapter.

"Talk"

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The silence is deafening. The water trickles by in peace, but I feel so cold. Oh so cold.

It treads up my pale skin and cools the feverish heat that plagues my body from my increasing anger. My spine tingles as the sensation crawls up like the beetles floating on the surface of the stream. The wonderful idea of sleep invades my thoughts, and I wish I could just sink under the tides to forget the troubles of war, depression, insomnia, monarchy, and death. Just such terrible deaths. Watching day after day of old blood seeping into my skin and causing it to turn a copper-red.

The smell was the worst.

My eyes bulge open as I realize something was not right. My body was slowly descending into the water as a hidden force continued to suppress it with the weight of the world…or a spell. My magic pulls on the foreign entity of another wizard, tainted with the horrors of pain and evil. Tears prickled at the corners of my eyes as fear grips me tightly and my fingers twitched in anticipation. Something wanted me dead, but not before I had a chance to kill it first.

Swerving around, I sent a wire of my shimmering magic that flowed with the powers of my words. Crowds of mockingbirds took flight and blinded me temporarily, "Denzel! Run before it's too late!"

He did not need a second command as he stubbornly stood there before running back to camp to find another capable wizard. My attention was stolen from me as another wave of spells tried to penetrate my protection wall that I threw up. I backed out of the icy waters that promised a peaceful end to my stress. My life.

A horde of warriors and wizards jumped from the forestry and ran at me at full force. Another earth spell later and trees grew horizontally to allow the soldiers to get across the river. Roars of battle cries lasted long enough for me to run away with my clothes, except for my boots, as I attempted to slip them on. When the final garment was brought over my head a good distance away from the river, a hurling ball of fire shot across my right side and nearly blistered my skin. I cursed at the spell caster that was suddenly standing in my way as the enemy's back up unit was surrounding us both.

I let anger pour into my words as a harsher fire of bright orange set ablaze the man's clothing as his own guard of men lifted their swords in defense. My head shook at the sheer number of men coming at me on all sides. Did they really need this many soldiers just to attack one Master Wizard? How ridiculous.

My feet blazed forward in the direction of the camp that was blocked off by the enemy. I wasn't that athletic in regards to my physical body, but I did know how to throw a punch or two. I ran close to the ground as I punched the packed soil to create a thick coating over my fist. The closest warrior swung his sword for a clean sweep of my head with a fierce cry to induce fear. I ducked low and used my momentum to drive my feet against his ankles until he fell backwards.

With swift actions, I brought my coated hands to send a powerful punch to his chest right in the sternum. If luck would have it, internal bleeding or a sternal fracture would be the death of him before he became a prisoner of some sorts. I turned on the soles of my feet and blasted a whip of water with a few simple words at the men gaining on my back. Another cry of soldiers pierced my ears as the rebellion group finally came to back me up from behind.

I continued to fight along side my fellow companions as my energy was slowly waning. I could fight for days I knew, but after traveling many miles drove a person to become tired especially with nightmares plaguing their minds. I crouched low to avoid another boulder being thrown around until a looming shadow eliminated my chance to move. The heels of my foot drove backwards and hit what I would assume to be a person's knee.

I tried to slip out of my captor's grip until a spew of blood gurgled from his side as a sword pierce his abdomen. The gigantic man fell to the ground and loosened his grip on me as I was finally able to be free of his extremely sweaty arms. Aldous gave me a thumbs-up and a wink before continuing his killing onslaught.

With a simple breath and wave of my wrist, water soaked another ambusher from head to toe before I sent a chilling wind to freeze him into ice. Before he took his final breath, our eyes caught each other as he growled a sneer at me. It was nice to know his final moments would be spent in humiliation as I froze him when he shot up a certain obscene gesture. I laughed bitterly as another soldier was thrown at the frozen statue and broke it to many pieces.

I looked around me as each enemy was taken down one by one. The blood made my insides cringe, but with each defeat meant one more victory for the good side. Many say that there are never "good" or "bad" people, just people who do bad or good things. No, they are all people who have good and bad thoughts but choose to be "good" or "bad" people. The things they do represent who their character is, therefore they are good or bad people.

Denzel came running up to me and smiled when he found no serious injuries, "Well it looks like our little Master knows how to defend herself."

"Of course, how else am I supposed to live on in life if I almost get killed where ever I go?" I stuck my hands on my hips and gave the dark man a disbelieving look.

"Ah my apologies," Denzel bowed low in a respectful, yet mocking, gesture as he swept his arm in and took a step back to give me more space. A kind smile reached his eyes as his brother greeted us both.

A few words were exchanged before one of the scouts shouted, "We found a survivor!"

We three passed a few injured soldiers that were being treated and haphazard dead bodies until we made our way through a small crowd circling a laying man in the woods. We parted them away from the suffocating warrior before I knelt in front of him as the man gave me a small smile, "You battle like a graceful crane Master Wizard."

"Tell me, what is your name my soldier?" I was highly confused as to why my enemy would give me such a tender gesture all the while complimenting me. All the men around me jumped as the man lifted his hand over his heart in a tired sort of fashion.

"My name is of no consequence. If you must, it is Mihkail," he said with a sigh as I gave him a stern look, "I am simply a petty foot soldier following orders unfortunately. At least it gives me a fair amount of money to survive." The man coughed up spots of blood the color of his crimson hair. His skin was slowly becoming paler by the second as I observed that he had a gash on his right side.

"Let me take a look at that wound," Mihkail hissed as I pried his hands from his jagged side and examined the flesh wound. With a tiny bit of energy, it was a bit easier healing this man than it did with Aldous the first time I returned back to this area. "I will not heal you all the way for obvious reasons, but if you could calmly stay with us we would like to ask you some questions."

Mihkail contently breathed as the pain was only a bitter lick at his side, "It is better than returning to that decaying castle…"

I looked deeply into his muddy eyes and saw the sadness hardening around the iris before standing up. His hand shot up to my arm before I could fully stand as a great number of swords lowered to Mihkail's neck. "Take your hand off the wizard before my sword takes it off," growled a random soldier in the mist of swordsmen.

The man did not flinch in the slightest as his intense gaze tried to penetrate my soul, "I thank you for sparing my life. I am in debt to your services." His weathered hand slipped away before his eyelids closed and he fell into a deep sleep. How can a man fall asleep in enemy territory, I do not know. What I do know is that this man is an odd one, yet his loyalty falls into those who deserve it in his eyes. Such a weird one he is, and hopefully he could help us somehow in the long run.

My feet carried me away as the morning sun was slipping into the afternoon and the hours passed by without any further disturbances. I could not stop wondering about how our mysterious captive was doing. Denzel and Vincent have not left Mihkail's tent since his arrival and it irks me to not know what was going on. I walked away from the camp to exam the former battlefield that took place not too long ago. Most of the enemies were buried by now, and only a few of my comrades stuck around for the clean up.

Men were slaving around with shovels as another huge hole was made for their warriors that decided to stick with the king that neglects his people. One of the capable wizards shouted a flame spell to ignite the dead bodies before the ashes died out, and the men covered the graves one by one. Many stopped to stare at me as I stood before the first freshly sealed grave.

I sent a small pray to Glenn's god before whispering a small incantation. In my folded hands bloomed one of the simplest funeral flowers that I dearly loved to create. I laid my white calla lily on the small grave before moving onto a much bigger grave in which the men must have realized burying one soldier at a time would waste precious energy.

The workers silently watched as I continued with my procession. Some whispered about how the former Master Wizard of Viegald was well known for this difficult magic and how well I was at performing this technique. At a particularly large mound, I casted a vast combination of blue irises, white carnations, and baby's breath as I breathed a word of sorrow for the families who would not see their beloved another night. On the last grave that I could bless with my spell besides the others that were yet to be buried, I conjured two white roses. I ripped off one of the roses petals and waited as the many others watched the petals fall ceremoniously to the pile of dirt. The other was placed at the end of the grave facing west in the dying sun.

Others merely stood struck at my act of kindness even though I was not "one of them." I walked away from the demising carnage and took in the last remaining rays of sunshine. I smiled at the brief moment of peace and felt the ground through bare feet as I forgot to put my shoes back on considering putting on shoes in the middle of running away would not have worked out so well.

The earth was moist from most of the shade the forest provided, and yet some spots were dry from the constant shine of sun. Leaves cracked and sprung back to life in a wilted sort of way as I walked over them. The grass was sweet in appearance and tickled the bottom of my feet. I wondered how that man was doing with his slightly healed wounds considering he was a prisoner, and the twins must have certain interrogative techniques if Mihkail proved to be difficult.

I played with a yellow dandelion that I found earlier and walked around the bustling camp. Some waved when taking a small break from their continuous work. Young men were sharpening their blades as others were working on the final proportions of food for dinner tonight. The smell of deer meat and fragrant spices only known to Glice country filled the small area as others sniffed around in hopes that the food was done. I laughed as a particular soldier was whacked across the head for trying to sneak some stew away.

I was enjoying a small crash course on how to make a straw bracelet with one of the scarred veterans when a messenger from Denzel requested for my assistance. I said my farewell and slipped the makeshift jewelry on my dainty wrist. The single blue bead and dandelion shown faintly in the orange hue of the setting sun.

The boy lifted the tarp up for me to enter as Mihkail and the twins waited for me to take a seat. The orange glow of light cascade over me until the flap was finally closed and we were left in silence.

"How are the others doing Mel?" Vincent greeted me with a nod of his head and a warm grin.

"Everyone is just fine. Most of the other soldiers are being buried and burned. Just a few moments ago I visited them and left flowers for their graves. The remains are being treated with the most respect that you can afford."

Denzel's tense body turned to me and questioned, "Meaning?"

"Most have to be buried in the same plot of land instead of each getting a personal mound and none have any marked grave besides the customary cross."

"As long as you aren't desecrating their remains, I do not have any problem with how they are laid to rest." A kind smile lifted Mihkail's features until he winced from the wound in his side.

"And the wound? Is it proving to be too difficult to handle? No torture from these two by any chance?"

"No. The prisoner is proving to be corporative with our cause and is actually more giving than we bargained for," Vincent eyed the injured man suspiciously, "Which leads to my previous question, why is it that you have never joined us and yet are willing to betray the King?"

"Understand this. I have an older sister that I must protect and fed though we are basically poor. They only real way we can eat every night is to work for that man. Without him, she can starve and I can't let that happen after a promise I made to her former husband. I am for your cause, but my duties lie with my family first."

"And why should we trust an enemy soldier like you?" Denzel glared at him at what seemed like the umpteenth time. His arms crossed over his chest in a defensive gesture as if waiting for a harsh comeback.

"You have no need to trust me. Either you believe me or not." Mihkail had a blank stare on his chiseled face as he watched for the leader's reaction.

"Why you no good son of a-"

"Denzel," Vincent warned slightly with just a look in his eyes.

"Vincent, Denzel…may I have a word with Mihkail for a bit."

"My pleasure," Denzel swiftly took leave of the cloth tent with his patient brother following him at a much slower pace. Vincent gave a slight bow before exiting the shelter.

The silence stretched on as I took the spot where Denzel had been sitting. His brown eyes gazed at me with curiosity before they softened and addressed me politely, "You are much too kind. A nice refresher from having to talk with those two all day."

"It is nice to know that I could make you feel better considering you are staying within enemy territory…even if you are one of the attackers aiming to end my life." I gave him one of those stares I usually reserved for people like my King. Cold, but attentive and non-threatening.

"Very chilling words from such a beautiful person. Do not get me wrong, I am not interested but you cannot deny your beauty Master Wizard."

"Call me Merleawe. I truly do hate such formalities outside the court. It does not promote friendship in my experience, only distance. Why are you complimenting me as much as you are?" His words confused me, and for some reason the idea of him trying to soften me up did not sit well. Many have already tried this method on me before stabbing the metaphorical knife in my back.

"I merely state the truth. I have no real reason to appeal to your better side, but I find you more comforting to talk to. Your personality reminds me of my sister. Cold and political on the outside, but you know that there has to be something kinder in her soul with the way her eyes are always so bright and hopeful."

"If you were of my country, you would know why my eyes dream of something more than just destruction that the rest of the human population seems to reap." I kept my gaze steady with his to show no sign of weakness. If what he said about him protecting his sister earlier was true, then I was nothing like that sister of his, "I am not like you sister in the least. I do not require the aid of a sibling in order to survive, personality or not."

"Still, I cannot help but think of you as her."

I sighed as I sat there with him humming a happy tune. I wondered vaguely if he was loonier than I was. My head cocked to the side as I recognized the happy tune vibrating in his throat, "Tell me, is that the Swallow's Serenade?"

"Ah you know of this? Most of the later generations have forgotten the traditional songs in exchange for the heroes of today. Yes, the Swallow's Serenade was taught to me by my grandmother before she passed away." His eyes brightened at the memories flashing before his eyes that I could not see before they darkened for a brief moment.

"It's a beautiful song. My mother learned it as she met a traveling jester who needed some directions. In return, he taught her the song before heading off. Both my brother and I learned it from her."

"Older or younger brother?"

"My older."

"See Merleawe. We are not too different in respect to our placement in our lives. Usually it's the older that takes care of the younger, except you have more responsibilities than I would ever care to take upon myself." A smirk stretched his pale lips as his eyes laughed at me.

"Then that makes me the 'bigger man' compared to you," I added a chuckle at the end for good measure. His company was not horrible to behold and it seemed we were more alike, but duty comes first. "What exactly did the twins ask of you?"

"Just the who, what and why."

"Your response?"

"The King asked for the murder of the rebellion. He became most dire about it after some spies watching the group saw you appear. You caused quite a stir at the castle," Mihkail laughed as the image of an enraged King Gyles IV going about all flustered, "As for the why, you are the Master Wizard of Viegald. We have noticed a change in your king so it would be best if Glice were to install some degree of fear into your king, no? What better way to do so than to kill off his protection."

"I understand. I just do not know if I should trust you with this. If you speak the truth, then…" The sounds of the dinner bell rang, but I could not move from my spot. The endless possibilities rushed through my head as battle strategies played out. If his information was plausible, then we may have a chance at a surprise ambush. From the inside.

"I speak the truth. Now what is it that you are thinking Merleawe?" His eyebrows were drawn in together in curiosity. He looked innocent, but in my profession you are to never to believe in the word of an individual until it is the most crucial moment or evidence has been shown.

"That is for me to know, and you to play out. I am sorry, but I cannot risk the rebels' lives in return for telling you such delicate information. For all I know, you are a spy and have some sort of network relaying your findings to King Gyles IV."

"I guess I was a bit too hopeful. Maybe after this, we can be friends," Mihkail smiled warmly at me as a blush adorned my cheeks. The heat was infuriating as I should not show any weakness to the enemy. I was surprised this man even dared to betray his king by being friendly with our group and ratting out the man's emotions.

"Maybe someday, Mihkail. Maybe."

* * *

**Merleawe : Main Character**

Current Master Wizard of Viegald. Her nickname is Mel to those who know her well. Her looks resemble the last Master Wizard, Sylth, and was posing as him until his supposed death. As of late, she has been experiencing some menacing nightmares so her personality has changed just a bit. She is now currently in Glice country where civil war has broken out once again. This time, no words will be able to win the battle and calm the rebellion's anger.

**Denzel: Leader of the Glice Rebellion**

Him along with his twin Vincent are the two leaders of the rebellion against the Glice Kingdom. The two share a special connection with King Gyles IV that won't be revealed just yet(can you guess?). He is a massive man with dark skin, black hair and obsidian eyes. He has a hot temper that is hard to control, but is a great leader that knows how to lead his soldiers out of difficult situations. Behind his tough exterior is a warm heart that worries over everyone else's well-being. Him and Mel met when the first rebellion between him and Gyles IV earlier last year. Her kind efforts and abilities to heal forced Denzel to give the King a second chance even if him and many others voted against it at first.

**Vincent: Vice Leader of the Glice Rebellion**

This guy loves to talk in long paragraphs and is wise enough to ramble like an old man. His advice is helpful and he is usually the mediator in most conflicts. His leadership skills rivals his brother and they look just alike. Vincent prefers to work in the background to watch all of the action rather than take the credit for all the glory. His calm attitude allows him to evaluate the situation to figure out the best possible solution to any problem.

**Aldous (pronounce Al-da-us): Second of Command under Vincent**

Mel found him underneath the carnage of a battlefield the time she returned to settle the current situation. His almost death was saved from its end when Mel was able to heal him and bring him to the rebel campsite. His bright eyes hope for better days as he believes that the rebellion will bring happier days without the over-taxing of the king. He is a happy-go-lucky guy who is usually found making trouble and sneaking food. His skill with the blade can outmatch anyone at the camp besides his two leaders.

**Mihkail (pronounced Me-kale): Wounded prisoner of war**

New character introduced. Hair is the color of blood and dark brown eyes like mud. He has a kind soul and wishes no one pain, but chooses to serve King Gyles because any other job could not support him and his sister(not to mention the other kids he bring home from time to time). His ideals suit those of the rebellion so he will now choose to serve the rebels though his cover will be like a prisoner of war. He is a natural kiss up and wants to make anyone happy if he likes them so get used to him randomly complimenting Mel.


End file.
